Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur was encouraged by the team’s reduced gap to McLaren in the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix, despite both drivers missing out on the podium.
The Italian marque was unable to add to the silverstone that it has attained on home soil as Charles Leclerc ended up in fourth place while Lewis Hamilton was sixth.
Leclerc, a two-time winner at Monza, bolstered the partisan crowd’s hopes in the opening laps when he passed Oscar Piastri’s McLaren to be running as high as third.
But Piastri retrieved the place on Lap 6 as it soon became apparent that Ferrari did not possess the speed to rival McLaren or the Red Bull in Max Verstappen’s hands.
To compound the pain, Leclerc’s tense duel with Piastri had caused his rear tyres to overheat, dropping him back towards George Russell until the situation stabilised.
Vasseur has recognised that the team could have advised Leclerc to be more cautious at the start to avoid the period in the race that damaged his podium prospects.
“It’s very difficult to imagine what could have been the race without this,” Vasseur told media including Motorsport Week.
“It’s true that in the fight at the beginning, we were not – strangely, because he was able to overtake one or two times Piastri – not in a good place.
“We overheated massively the tyres and then we paid the price the next five, six laps, when Russell was able to follow and the others to fly. But, OK, it is like it is.
“I think that we have to think about this. We could have been different in the opening lap.”
Ferrari sees silver lining to Monza podium no-show
Leclerc overcame that phase to cross the line a little over four seconds behind Piastri, an outcome that Vasseur sought solace in amid McLaren’s dominance in 2025.
“Overall, I think today that, first, it’s a shame and I’m disappointed to not be able to bring a podium to the Tifosi, because when you see the pitlane and the start and finish line at the podium, it would have been magic and they deserve it,” he continued.
“But I think we are close to the McLaren today. It’s probably the smallest gap of the season.
“I think that Max was outstanding. From the first lap to the last lap, he was there, he was flying and he was much faster than us.
“But, overall, I think, compared to Mercedes and McLaren, we did our job. It’s not enough, but we did our job.”
When asked whether he expected a podium coming into the weekend, Vasseur responded: “I think we are one tenth off the first row yesterday.
“Even if you play differently with the engine mode, the fuel and so, we are speaking about 3-4 kilos of fuel. This we never know.
“But it’s true also that even in the race, it’s the smallest gap with McLaren. It was also the smallest gap in FP3, the smallest gap in quali, in FP1.
“And I think we are in better shape this weekend. Not enough, because they are in front of us. But I think at least we closed the gap.”
READ MORE – Charles Leclerc details why Ferrari ended up ‘in the middle of nowhere’ in F1 Italian GP
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